Professional Documents
Culture Documents
of the part-
nerships are expected to continue
co-operation after the ENNEREG
project has ended.
The Regions 202020 platform has
been put in place as a facilitator of
How can regions contribute to ful-
flling the EUs sustainable energy
policy goals? This was the overall ob-
jective set for the ENNEREG project
on sustainable energy regions in Eu-
rope.
ENNEREG developed and imple-
mented regional Sustainable Energy
Action Plans (SEAPs) to steer the
sustainable energy process in the
following regions: Upper Palatinate,
Germany; Cyclades, Greece; Triangle,
Denmark; Basque, Spain; Madeira,
Portugal; Silistra, Bulgaria; Kaunas,
Lithuania; Blekinge, Sweden; Rhne
Alpes, France; Wales, United King-
dom; Pomerania and Wielkopolska,
Poland. A key element in this has
been a network oriented approach
for engaging the regions key stake-
holders; the process only succeeds
and creates momentum for a long-
term impact if a broad spectrum of
stakeholders from both the public
and private sector become engaged.
While some of the partner regions
had a more mature starting point
and were able to progress further in
the process, all regions took essen-
tial steps in creating a sustainable en-
ergy region. The successes, strengths
and weaknesses in the course of the
action have been evaluated for the
beneft of other regions, so they can
also make a start and progress along
the path towards becoming sustain-
able energy regions.
The work on regional SEAPs has been
accompanied by the promotion of
specifc sustainable energy actions.
Regions paving way for a
sustainable energy Europe
Nils Daugaard, Energy Consulting Network ApS (Denmark)
Programme website:
ec.europa.eu/energy/intelligent/
Project website:
http://www.regions202020.eu/
Project coordinator: Energy Consult-
ing Network ApS, Denmark, Mr Nils
Daugaard, nda@ecnetwork.dk
Project budget: EUR 1 960 472.00
(EU contribution: 75%)
Project duration:
01.05.2010 30.04.2013
Fig. 12: Dessalinated water unit on the
Cyclades (photo: G. Makryonitis)
MULTI-LEVEL GOVERNANCE I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
25
challenges in enhancing renewable
energy and green growth. This co-
operation has made it possible for
stakeholders to establish shared ini-
tiatives in several felds.
One example is the fndings from
the work with municipal regulation
of low-energy buildings. A review of
the strategies developed in the cities
of Copenhagen and Malm showed
that Malm benefts greatly from
implementing a systemized dialogue
with private developers at an early
stage of city planning, in order to en-
hance the energy effciency of new
buildings. The Builders Dialogue
proved to have great effect on the
duration and costs of construction.
Developers shared costs for com-
mon installations (such as parking
lots), and were inspired to reach for
even higher standards, while the mu-
nicipalities motivated many different
The cross-border co-operation
project Energy resund unites Dan-
ish and Swedish municipalities,
power suppliers and universities in
efforts to increase the share of re-
newable energy in the resund Re-
gion through strategic energy plan-
ning. The project focuses on the
crucial pillars in the transition of our
energy systems: What does it take
to enhance wind power production
by setting up plants shared between
two countries? How do we trans-
form electricity into heat? Is seasonal
waste storage cost-benefcial? What
is the ideal regulative set-up for low-
energy buildings? These are exam-
ples of questions the partners are
focusing their work on.
Energy resund offers stakehold-
ers across the energy planning cycle
(owner, producer, developer) the
opportunity to compare and share
Danish and Swedish incentives and
Energy resund a more sustainable
future through co-operation
Maja Baungaard Jensen & Neel Modin Ynddal, Energy resund (Denmark)
Karolina Huss, Interreg IVA resund-Kattegat-Skagerrak Programme (Denmark)
interaction between European re-
gions and communities on SEAP
actions. The website contains use-
ful information not only from the
ENNEREG project but also parallel
projects, and attracted great interest
with more than 327 000 visits to the
website during the project period. In
addition, almost 700 regional and lo-
cal stakeholders have joined the Re-
gions 202020 Network.
Due to the wide variation in regional
characteristics, there is no uniform
approach to how to design a SEAP
and SEP implementation process.
Regions that are starting such a
process must fnd a path suited to
the regions specifc circumstances.
ENNEREGs Inspiration Guide, build-
ing on the examples and learning of
the partner regions, helps regions
identify how they can take appropri-
ate steps in order to elaborate and
implement SEAPs. It is enriched with
extensive good practice examples
and implementation stories from
the achievements in the ENNEREG
regions.
developers to contribute, in order to
ensure variety in the new city area.
As a consequence of these positive
results, the City of Copenhagen has
now initiated the process of adjust-
ing the methods to Danish condi-
tions, guided by supervisors from the
City of Malm.
Another example is Green Co-op-
eration Denmark-Sweden. A cross
national visitors service was estab-
lished, offering delegations the op-
portunity not only to see a number
of applied technologies, but also
explore similarities and differences
in how policies and development
projects are planned and run. While
the Danish partner (State of Green)
already has a visitor service in place,
the Swedish organization is yet to be
established. As part of the project,
the Swedish counterpart Sustain-
able Business Hub launched the visi-
Fig. 13: Energy education in Wales
(photo: ENNEREG)
MULTI-LEVEL GOVERNANCE I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
26
municipalities approved by the high-
est level of administration.
Moreover, the project fndings are
anchored at a municipal political
level by making use of existing or
developing offcial strategies, such
as the offcial strategic co-operation
between the cities of Malm and Co-
penhagen and municipal plans and
guidelines. At regional political level,
the project cooperates with the re-
sund Committee, in which municipal
and regional politicians inspire each
other in planning for the future of
the resund Region. The Committee
supports raising the project fndings
to national level, as contact between
the Swedish and Danish Energy Au-
thorities is important in order to initi-
ate changes in the energy measure-
ment framework in both countries.
tor service GreenTech Visits, and a
common platform was developed.
Delegations are offered frst-hand
experience of two different ways of
solving the green challenges of the
future. Green Co-operation Den-
mark-Sweden is a prime example of
the top green solutions in the re-
sund Region within climate adapta-
tion, sustainable urban planning,
waste treatment and biogas, as it
creates an important link between
foreign municipalities, companies,
etc. and local Swedish and Danish
counterparts.
One of the most important concerns
for the project is to ensure full inte-
gration of the fndings at local, re-
gional and national level. As exempli-
fed above, Energy resund supports
long-term co-operation between
Programme website: www.interreg-oks.eu
Project website: www.energioresund.org
Project lead partner: Energi resund,
Denmark, Ms Maja Baungaard Jensen,
maja.baungaard@luopen.lu.se
Project budget: EUR 1 410 924.00
ERDF co-fnancing: EUR 782 882.00
Project duration:
January 2011- December 2013
f Fig. 15: Scholars during the puppet show
that took place in Denia during the EU Energy
Week 2012. (photo: Alicante Energy Agency)
f Fig. 16 & 17: LED street light installed in the
city of Benimassot within the Provincial Energy
Savings Plan. (photo: Alicante Energy Agency)
Fig. 14: Visit to wind turbine on European
Cooperation Day (photo: Energi resund)
MULTI-LEVEL GOVERNANCE I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
27
domestic hot water systems in pub-
lic buildings in the city of Benifato to
more effcient ones.
Alicante Energy Agency also par-
ticipated in the development of the
concept and design, as well as pro-
viding a member of the jury for a
regional competition on exemplary
energy effciency works organised by
the Province of Alicante within the
Covenant of Mayors initiative. Onil,
the winning city, was awarded EUR
20 000 to install photovoltaic street-
lights with LED lamps in one of its
busiest areas.
veloped a Sustainable Energy Action
Plan and submit technical feasibility
studies for proposed energy effcien-
cy projects. The provincial authority
awards 95% grant funding through
a call to municipalities that are pro-
posing energy effciency and energy
savings projects, and that have ex-
pressed their frm commitment by
signing the Covenant of Mayors ini-
tiative.
The energy agency assists the provin-
cial authority in the selection process
by validating the technical and fnan-
cial feasibility of the proposed meas-
ures. It also supports the local munic-
ipalities in carrying out the measures
and monitoring energy consumption
reductions after the interventions.
The frst two calls enabled 62 mu-
nicipalities to reduce their energy bill
by EUR 500 000 per year - and CO
2
emissions by 700 tons/year in total.
Investments focused on improving
street lighting, and 17 municipalities
replaced sodium and mercury vapour
lamps with LED lights. LEDs were
also used in public schools in Biar,
replacing fuorescent tubes.
Another project from this call fo-
cused on changing old heating,
ventilation and air conditioning and
The example of the Province of Ali-
cante illustrates the important role
energy agencies can play in develop-
ing regional energy strategies. With
its technical expertise and capacity,
the energy agency is supporting the
provincial authority in the planning,
development and monitoring of the
provincial energy saving plan. More-
over, it helps with the design of tech-
nical and administrative tools for en-
ergy management, and supports the
Provincial Council in managing the
Covenant of Mayors in the Province.
Alicante Energy Agency works
closely with the provincial author-
ity, acting as a facilitator-interlocutor
with all municipalities in the delivery
of the plan. This plan is a technical
and fnancial tool that has a budget
of EUR 4.5 million for 2012 - 2014,
and is implemented through annual
calls. The idea behind the plan is to
assist municipalities fulfl their com-
mitment to the Covenant of Mayors,
help municipalities reduce their en-
ergy bills and improve the liquidity of
their public accounts.
To be able to beneft from the grant,
municipalities must be a signatory of
the Covenant of Mayors, have de-
Regional energy action planning in
the Province of Alicante
Gemma Beln & Antonio Belmar, Alicante Energy Agency (Spain)
Programme website: ec.europa.
eu/energy/intelligent/
Project website: www.alicantenergia.es
Agency director: Province of
Alicante, Spain, Mr Jose Luis
Nun, info@alicantenergia.es
Project budget: EUR 1 016 266.77
MULTI-LEVEL GOVERNANCE I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
28
ess, the municipality of Wittenberge
created a position of local energy
manager, located within the building
authority of the citys administration,
to implement the energy strategy.
On project level, the Baltic Energy
Compendium was elaborated as a
collection and conclusion of the en-
ergy strategies of the single project
regions. This should serve as a blue
print for other European regions,
promoting a bottom-up approach to
energy planning. The Baltic Energy
Declaration, signed by all PEA project
partners, commits the subscribing
party to sustainable energy produc-
tion and responsible use of energy,
hence contributing to the achieve-
ment of the EU 2020 targets.
to produce more energy from re-
newable energy sources and if yes,
from which resources and under
which conditions?, What can we
do to encourage the sustainable and
responsible use of energy by indi-
viduals, households, local companies
and administrative bodies?
Action plans for pursuing the imple-
mentation beyond the duration of
the project were a vital part of the
strategies, while project fndings
were presented at higher political
levels and in a European context;
e.g., round table meetings were held
on NUTS-II level and PEA participated
in the Baltic Sea Region Cluster Ini-
tiative Energy Effciency and Renew-
able Energy Sources.
The projects Lead Partner, the mu-
nicipality of Wittenberge in Germa-
ny, elaborated the strategy in joint
collaboration with the City Council,
public utilities, housing companies,
several administrative bodies, and
the projects scientifc partners. An
open and engaging dialogue ensured
the support of these actors. What
may have appeared trivial at the out-
set became, in fact, a key success
factor. Experience shows that it is
not enough to communicate the ad-
vantages and importance of sustain-
able energy production and supply
to stakeholders; it is crucial to listen
to their problems, and ideas. Inte-
grating the affected stakeholders in
the process of energy planning and
letting them know that their opinion
is vital, ensures their long-term sup-
port. As a consequence of this proc-
In recent years, the cost of fossil en-
ergy resources has increased heavily,
and this trend is likely to continue in
the medium and long term. Rising
energy costs contribute to steadily
increasing fnancial pressure on pub-
lic utilities and public transportation,
making it necessary to explore alter-
native energy sources, and absorb
rising costs by critically questioning
the status quo of energy consump-
tion and identifying existing energy
saving potential. By adding a value
base to new value chains, these chal-
lenges can be turned into opportuni-
ties and become the motor for sus-
tainable regional development.
The Public Energy Alternatives project
(PEA) addressed these challenges in a
transnational partnership consisting
of public authorities, research institu-
tions and mainstreaming partners, to
share knowledge and expertise for
the development and implementa-
tion of regional energy strategies.
At regional or local level, energy
strategies were elaborated for each
participating region of the PEA part-
nership and under the premise of
developing a realistic vision for
the regions. The potential of sustain-
able energy supply and consump-
tion based on renewable resources
was assessed based on the regions
renewable energy infrastructure
and its potential. Guiding questions
in the development of the strategy
were, for example, What have we
already done in terms of renewables,
rational use of energy, CO
2
emissions
saved?, Do we have the potential
Renewable energies as a motor for
sustainable regional development
Jan Schmidt, atene KOM GmbH (Germany)
Programme website: www.eu.baltic.net
Project website: www.peaproject.eu
Project lead partner:
Municipality of Wittenberge, Germany,
Mr Jan Schmidt, j.schmidt@atenekom.eu
Project budget: EUR 385 295.00
ERDF co-fnancing: EUR 288 971.00
Project duration:
September 2009 - December 2012
FINANCING INSTRUMENTS I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
29
The diffcult fund-
ing situation public
authorities fnd them-
selves in is further complicated
by other important barriers, such
as the lack of capacity to develop
bankable projects and lack of viable
fnancial models. Public authorities
often lack internal resources and
know-how for harvesting even prof-
itable low-hanging fruits with low
pay-back times, such as refurbish-
ment of public lighting. Barriers also
include high up-front costs for the
development of sustainable energy
projects as well as the low profta-
bility of many projects, even though
these projects might have high
socio-economic benefts. One such
example is the deep energy retroft
of existing housing, which, by tak-
ing a whole-building approach, can
result in much larger energy savings
than a conventional energy retroft
would, but payback times are often
too long to attract private investors.
annual allocation of EUR 2.43 billion
for energy effciency and renewable
energy measures planned through
the European Regional Develop-
ment Fund (ERDF) between 2014
and 2020. The proposed ERDF ring-
fenced share that should be used
for the transition to a low-carbon
economy is currently a minimum of
12% in less developed regions and
a minimum of 20% in other regions,
totalling at least EUR 17 billion for
that period (increased from the EUR
9.4 billon that was available be-
tween 2007 and 2013). At the same
time, the European Energy Effciency
Directive is calling Member States to
establish energy effciency obligation
schemes to direct private investment
towards energy effciency projects
16
.
Need for fnancing solutions
Seven years into the challenge to
make Europes energy system less
carbon-intensive, more effcient and
independent of fossil fuels by 2020,
it becomes clear that the costs of
achieving these targets cannot be
met by the public purse alone, and
the use of market-based instruments
needs to be increased. Signifcant
amounts of investment are needed
in the energy effciency of existing
infrastructures and an energy supply
based on renewables, at a time when
Europe is experiencing a severe eco-
nomic crisis. An estimated EUR 80
billion
15
needs to be spent annually in
Europe to achieve the target of 20%
reduction of primary energy use, as
set in the 20-20-20 objectives. This
amount is 33 times higher than the
Innovative fnancing mechanisms for
investments into energy effciency
and renewable energy
Financing the implementation of sustainable energy measures remains one of the biggest challenges on
the path towards sustainable energy communities. In spite of political commitment and sound action
planning at local level, crucial projects are often not realised by municipalities due to a lack of fnancial
resources and a lack of capacity to apply fnancing mechanisms. Nevertheless, interested municipalities
and regions can learn from a growing number of good practice examples on overcoming funding barri-
ers through the innovative fnancing solutions that exist across Europe.
15
Source: European Commission, DG Energy
16
See Directive 2012/27/EU on energy effciency: http://ec.europa.eu/energy/effciency/eed/eed_en.htm
FINANCING INSTRUMENTS I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
30
across the EU. The funding supports
project development costs and not
the actual energy investments, thus
assisting pubic authorities to buy in
necessary legal, fnancial and techni-
cal expertise.
Good practice examples
Substantial experience has been
gained over recent years as the use
of fnancial instruments has become
more wide-spread, and a consid-
erable number of good practice
examples has emerged many of
which originate from European Ter-
ritorial Co-operation and Intel-
ligent Energy Europe
projects. During our
seminar we dedicated a whole
session to a hands-on information
exchange between projects with
practical experience in fnancial en-
gineering and those eager to learn.
Five projects reported on how they
tackled the fnancing issue in their
context, the obstacles they faced,
and how they managed to overcome
them. All these examples illustrate
that public authorities have already
found smart fnancing solutions for
their sustainable energy projects. It
is crucial that local and regional au-
thorities across Europe transfer these
good practices into their own reali-
ties.
Financing for integrated urban
development
Sustainable energy investment
projects often follow a sectorial ap-
proach, focusing - for example - on
the refurbishment of buildings or the
development of a local renewable
In some European countries the law
does not allow public authorities to
increase debts, which often prevents
them from investing in sustainable
energy projects, even though this
would make economic sense in the
mid-term.
Other fnancial challenges, but also
effective solutions, are today well
documented; for example, by the
Finance Working Group of the
Smart Cities and Communities Stake-
holder Platform
17
.
The European Commission calls for
an increased use of ERDF funds to es-
tablish fnancing instruments such as
Jessica, Jeremie and Jaspers, which
help set up long-term fnancial vehi-
cles that support sustainable energy
projects. In addition, the European
Commission provides help to public
authorities in overcoming the bar-
riers associated with project devel-
opment through specifc assistance
facilities funded by the Intelligent En-
ergy Europe Programme, such as the
European Local Energy Assistance
(ELENA) and Mobilising Local Energy
Investment (MLEI)
18
. These facilities
aim to support shining examples of
organisational innovation to launch
investments in sustainable energy
projects that can be widely replicated
UrbEnergy
Programme website: http://eu.baltic.net
Project website: www.urbenergy.eu
Project lead partner: German Association
for Housing, Urban and Spatial Develop-
ment, Germany, Mr Christian Huttenloher,
c.huttenloher@deutscher-verband.org
Project budget: EUR 3 714 260.00
ERDF co-fnancing: EUR 2 805 030.00
Project duration: Octo-
ber 2008 - January 2012
17
http://www.eu-smartcities.eu/blog/fnance-group-documents-open-consultation
18
http://ec.europa.eu/energy/intelligent/getting-funds/project-development-assistance
JESSICA
JESSICA is a so-called revolving
fund. EU countries can choose to
invest some of their EU structural
fund allocations in revolving funds
to help recycle fnancial resources,
thus accelerating investment in
Europes urban areas. By allocat-
ing some of the European Regional
Development Fund money to Urban
Development Funds, which invest
them in public-private partnerships
or other projects included in an in-
tegrated plan for sustainable urban
development, this money takes the
form of equity, loans and/or guar-
antees. In this way, the returns
from investments are reinvested in
new urban development projects
and the public money is recycled.
For more information, visit: http://
ec. europa. eu/ regi onal _pol i cy/
thefunds/ i nstruments/ j essi ca_
en.cfm#1
FINANCING INSTRUMENTS I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
31
MLEI POSITIF
Programme website: ec.europa.
eu/energy/intelligent/
Project website: www.energiespositif.fr
Project coordinator: SEM Ener-
gies POSITIF, France, Mr Jos LOPEZ,
jose.lopez@energiespositif.fr
Project budget: EUR 2 061
018.00 (EU contribution: 75%)
Project duration:
05.04.2013 04.04.2016
equity fnancing. Good results have
been experienced in Estonia (Kre-
dEx
19
) and England (London Ener-
gy Effciency Fund
20
). Urb.Energy
points out the importance of leav-
ing behind pure subsidy schemes
and instead establishing revolving
funds that are able to recycle money
and are long-lasting. However, the
project concludes that more techni-
cal support is needed to assist pub-
lic authorities in setting-up such
funds.
Energy Performance Contracting
Energy Performance Contracting
(EPC) has become one of the key
fnancial instruments for facilitating
investment into the energy effciency
of existing infrastructure, such as
buildings and lighting systems. The
promotion of energy saving services
by Member States is one of the ob-
ligations deriving from the Energy
Effciency Directive. Since the Euro-
pean market around EPCs has been
evolving in many directions, the
directive suggests minimum condi-
tions
21
which should be stipulated in
an EPC, in order to ensure a fair and
transparent contract between client
and service provider.
The Intelligent Energy Europe MLEI
project POSITIF is pioneering the
concept of EPC for deep renovation
of condominiums in the Region of
energy supply. The European Territo-
rial Co-operation project Urb.Energy
advocates a holistic view on the built
environment and social structure: it
combines the approach of energy
effcient refurbishment of residential
buildings with integrated urban de-
velopment concepts, the modernisa-
tion of the energy supply infrastruc-
ture, the revaluation of the residential
environment, and the identifcation
of innovative fnancing instruments.
Whilst there are funding mecha-
nisms available for sustainable en-
ergy projects on one hand and urban
development funds on the other, the
fnancing opportunities for properly
linking energy effciency and renew-
able energy supply with the urban
dimension in integrated urban de-
velopment concepts are yet to be
fully developed. The pooling of dif-
ferent funding sources remains a big
challenge for public authorities, and
impedes a more universal approach
in developing low carbon neighbour-
hoods in urban settings.
An important tool for using EU fund-
ing for urban development which
may include energy refurbishment
is JESSICA. This fnancial instrument
helps to set up revolving funds that
can provide loans, guarantees or
19
http://www.kredex.ee/energy-effciency/
20
http://www.leef.co.uk/
21
Directive 2012/27/EU on energy effciency, Annex XIII
The idea of Energy Performance
Contracting
Energy Performance Contracting is
a proven, cost-effcient instrument
for tapping existing energy saving
potentials in the building sector. An
Energy Service Company (ESCO) im-
plements a customized energy serv-
ice package consisting of planning,
building, operation & maintenance,
optimisation, fuel purchase, (co-) f-
nancing and user behaviour.
The contract between ESCO and
the building owner contains guar-
antees for cost savings, and takes
over the fnancial and technical
risks involved in implementation
and operation for the entire project
duration of typically 5 to 15 years.
The EPC service or main parts of it
is paid by realized energy cost sav-
ings.
More information on: www.euro-
pean-energy-service-initiative.net
FINANCING INSTRUMENTS I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
32
ings, as well as the payback of the
investment with the delivery risk
transferred to the ESCO. The energy
investments are fnanced through
own capital, borrowing (e.g., Lon-
don Energy Effciency Fund provided
through JESSICA), third party fund-
ing, service agreements or operating
leases. Up until now, the programme
has invested around EUR 17.5 mil-
lion in energy effciency measures in
136 public buildings, resulting in an
annual energy cost saving of more
than EUR 2.5 million. By 2015 it aims
to cover 600 London public sector
buildings and reap savings of EUR 14
million per year.
The Belgian Province of Limburg is
also using an ESCO to achieve their
ambitious target of becoming cli-
mate neutral by 2020. In a concerted
effort, 44 Mayors throughout the
province signed up to the Covenant
of Mayors initiative, signalling their
political commitment to support
the climate and energy targets. The
Province of Limburg is leading a con-
sortium of local partners, including
the provincial energy grid operator
Infrax in the IEE MLEI project ESCO-
LIMBURG2020. This project aims to
accelerate the large-scale retroftting
to high energy standards (average
savings of 40%) of the public build-
ing stock owned by the 44 munici-
palities and the province itself, by
making use of an optimised ESCO-
model. This solution aims to relieve
the local authorities from complex
investment processes. The ESCO of-
fer consists of the management of
the whole energy retroftting process
on behalf of the municipality, from
the feasibility analysis to the tender-
ing and implementation of the work.
The investments are either paid up-
front by the municipality or deferred.
Grid operator Infrax will act as the
Ile-de-France. For this purpose, the
regional authority set up a public-
private Energy Service Company En-
ergies POSITIF in January 2013 with
capital of EUR 5.3 million from re-
gional and local authorities and the
banking sector (Caisse des Dpts et
Consignations and Caisse dEpargne
Ile-de-France). The ESCO will develop
an innovative EPC model based on a
design-implement-operate contract
for works and services, a guarantee
on energy performance in the opera-
tion phase, and the refurbishment
to the French low energy building
standard (BBC - btiment basse con-
sommation). The innovation also lies
in the ESCO providing full technical
coordination of the work, including
a fnancing offer for deep renova-
tion projects that will have long-term
contracts running for 15 to 30 years.
The project aims to mobilise energy
investments of nearly EUR 40 million
in the low-energy refurbishment of
condominiums, social housing and
public buildings by 2016.
Londons building retroft pro-
gramme RE:FIT was launched by
the Mayor of London (Greater Lon-
don Authority) in 2010 and is funded
through the ELENA facility of the
European Investment Bank. RE:FIT is
an Energy Performance Contracting
framework for public sector organi-
sations, providing guaranteed ener-
gy savings across a portfolio of build-
ings and over a set payback period. A
team called the Programme Delivery
Unit was tendered by the Greater
London Authority and supports cli-
ents through all stages of their RE:FIT
projects: identifcation of buildings,
energy benchmarking, fnancing op-
tions, setting energy saving targets
and payback times, selecting and
supervising ESCOs carrying out the
works and guaranteeing the sav-
RE:FIT
Programme website: http://
www.eib.org/products/elena/
Project website: http://www.reft.org.uk/
Project coordinator: Greater London
Authority, United Kingdom, Ms Vicky
Kingston, vicky.kingston@london.gov.uk
Project Management, United Kingdom
Project budget: EUR 2 884 680.00
Project duration: 2011 -2013
ESCO Limburg
Programme website: ec.europa.
eu/energy/intelligent/
Project website: www.escolimburg2020.be
Project coordinator: Province of
Limburg, Belgium, Mr Patrick Bouc-
neau, patrick.boucneau@limburg.be
Project budget: EUR 1 174 380.00
Project duration: 01.04.2013 31.03.2016
FINANCING INSTRUMENTS I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
33
ManagEnergy
22
initiative organises
45 capacity building workshops as
part of a European EPC campaign,
which in the future will also include
webinars organised by the Covenant
of Mayors Offce
23
. A special corner
at the ManagEnergy website is dedi-
cated to project fnancing, explaining
fnancing instruments and present-
ing some case studies. In addition,
the corner will inform about future
workshops and conferences around
the theme of sustainable energy in-
vestments.
ESCO, and aims to bundle total en-
ergy investments of almost EUR 20
million over the course of the next
three years.
Voluntary agreements
The ETC project ELIH-MED focuses
on improving energy effciency and
promoting energy saving in low
income housing in the Mediterra-
nean region, and looks at innova-
tive fnancial mechanisms backed
by ERDF funds. The project is on-go-
ing, and the pilot energy refurbish-
ment projects to be implemented
by the partners will experiment with
a number of innovative fnancing
mechanisms. One of those is vol-
untary agreements with the private
sector. Voluntary agreements in the
framework of large-scale energy ef-
fciency projects are contracts be-
tween a local, regional, national
government or public sector or-
ganisation and an industry partner,
with negotiated targets, clear com-
mitments and time schedules for all
participating parties. The agreements
can either be based on mutual vol-
untary commitment or facilitated
through legislation or taxation poli-
cies, setting specifc obligations on
sectors. For example, the Municipal-
ity of Genoa was able to leverage in
some funding for the refurbishment
of apartment buildings from con-
struction companies by means of
voluntary agreements.
Capacity building
There are many other ways of f-
nancing sustainable energy projects
around Europe and there is a wealth
of case studies - including ELENA
and MLEI projects- using different
instruments successfully. In order
to support municipalities in fnding
innovative ways of fnancing their
sustainable energy projects, the
ELIH-MED
Programme website: www.
programmemed.eu
Project website: www.elih-med.eu
Project lead partner: National Agency
for New Technologies, Energy and
Sustainable Economic develop-
ment (ENEA), Italy, Ms Anna
Moreno, anna.moreno@enea.it
Project budget: EUR 9 147 196.00
Project duration: April 2011 - March 2014
Fig. 18: Energy refurbishment of low-
income housing in Genoa, Italy (pho-
to: ELIH-Med)
Fig. 19: Energy refurbishment of stu-
dent residences in Komotini, Greece
(photo: ELIH-Med)
22
www.managenergy.net
23
www.eumayors.eu
Gateway to Project Develop-
ment Assistance facilities
Project Development Assistance
(PDA) is targeted at public authori-
ties and bodies, and covers up to
90% of the technical support cost
needed to prepare, implement
and fnance the investment pro-
gramme. This could include feasibil-
ity and market studies, programme
structuring, energy audits and ten-
dering procedure preparation. With
solid business and technical plans
in place, this will also help attract
funding from private banks and
other sources. MLEI and ELENA
PDA facilities are funded through
the Intelligent Energy Europe Pro-
gramme and are separately man-
aged by the Executive Agency for
Competitiveness and Innovation,
European Investment Bank, Coun-
cil of Europe Bank, Kreditanstalt fr
Wiederaufbau and European Bank
for Reconstruction and Develop-
ment. More detailed information
and case studies are available at:
http://ec.europa.eu/energy/intel-
ligent/getting-funds/project-devel-
opment-assistance/index_en.htm
PROGRAMMES I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
34
The Intelligent Energy Europe (IEE) programme fnances projects promoting the uptake of sustainable energy
solutions. Launched in 2003 by the European Commission, the programme is part of a broad push to create an
energy-intelligent future for us all. It supports EU energy effciency and renewable energy policies, with a view to
reaching EU 2020 targets. The programme is managed on behalf of the European Commission by the Executive
Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation (EACI).
Find out more about our projects and visit us on http://ec.europa.eu/energy/intelligent.
Please also visit the ManagEnergy portal which is a technical support initiative of the Intelligent Energy - Europe
(IEE) programme and which aims to assist actors from the public sector and their advisers working on energy ef-
fciency and renewable energy at the local and regional level. www.managenergy.net/
The Intelligent Energy Europe programme is also funding the Covenant of Mayors initiative, which is the main-
stream European movement involving local and regional authorities, voluntarily committing to increasing energy
effciency and use of renewable energy sources on their territories. www.eumayors.eu
About Intelligent Energy Europe
About INTERACT
INTERACT is a programme co-fnanced by the European Regional Development Fund and the EU Member States,
Norway and Switzerland. Since 2003 we have been delivering services to European Union programmes working
with European Territorial Co-operation: we are the European programme created especially for assisting territorial
co-operation programmes.
What does INTERACT do?
We provide practical support, training and advice to European Territorial Co-operation programmes on manage-
ment techniques, fnancial issues, European regulations, communication, strategic orientation and policy develop-
ment.
We also offer a unique forum for European Territorial Co-operation stakeholders by supporting institutional and
thematic networks on topics of common interest.
Find out more about our activities and services on www.interact-eu.net
Our expertise includes:
f Programme and fnancial management
f Project management and support
f Capitalisation for co-operation programmes and projects
f Strategic programme planning
f Audit and control
f Monitoring and evaluation
f Communications
PROJECTS I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
35
ACRONYM WEBSITE BRIEF DESCRIPTION
City_SEC www.citysec.eu Capacity building for municipal staff and decision-makers to be
able to draft and implement Sustainable Energy Action Plans
and become active members of the Covenant of Mayors initia-
tive.
100% RES
COMMUNITIES
www.100-res-communities.eu Experimenting and spreading the model of joint Sustainable
Energy Action Plans (SEAPS) development and implementation
in rural territories and towns in 10 European countries.
COOPENERGY www.coopenergy.eu Foster the development of collaboration models in sustainable
energy planning between the regional and local public authori-
ties to lead the transition towards low carbon communities and
regions.
COVENANT
CAPACITY
www.covenant-capacity.eu Testing and roll-out of a comprehensive, well-structured Euro-
pean Local Government capacity building programme to sup-
port all the phases of implementing a SEAP, and to empower
municipalities to engage in the Covenant of Mayors.
ENERGY FOR
MAYORS
www.energyformayors.eu Strengthening the role and capacity of Covenant Coordinators
and Supporters as well as at assisting in the development and
implementation of Sustainable Energy Action Plans with local
authorities.
ERENET http://erenet.epu.ntua.gr/ Development of an intelligent and integrated Rural Web
Energy Learning Network for Action with the aim to assist the
rural communities to develop their specifc SEAPs and identify
bankable projects.
GREEN TWIN-
NING
http://green-twinning.eu/ Supporting local authorities in the preparation and implementa-
tion of their Sustainable Energy Action Plans through twinning
partnerships and tutoring.
MESHARTILITY www.meshartility.eu Development of procedures to facilitate the exchange of data
of energy consumption among energy utilities and public au-
thorities responsible for the development of SEAPs.
NETCOM www.networkingcovenantofmayors.eu Creation of 12 permanent national/regional Covenant Network-
ing Platforms with active involvement of LAs and national/
regional key actors.
PATRES www.patres.net Enhancing effective policies fostering the introduction of
renewable energies (RES) in building regulations and codes for
new or refurbished buildings and improving RES-related public
procurement.
Region of Trier
Energy Agency
www.energieagentur-region-trier.de EART has participated in the setup of the nearly passive-house
settlements,vocational training course for school teachers and
citizens, provides lists with energy consultants and funding pos-
sibilities for retrofting of existing buildings.
SEAP PLUS www.seap-plus.eu Enhancing the Covenant of Mayors results and impacts
through increasing the number of Covenant Coordinators/Sup-
porters and signatories with Sustainable Energy Action Plans.
SMILEGOV www.sustainableislands.eu Seting-up clusters of European islands that will facilitate the
exchange between different levels of governance and be-
tween different clusters in order to support the development
of sustainable energy action plans and the implementation of
concrete actions.
SUSREG www.susreg.eu Improving the knowledge, attitudes and skills of professional
planners through a 3-stage capacity building programme in-
cluding on-the-job training of planners on real case examples.
Other participating IEE projects
PROJECTS I Proceedings of the joint IEE & INTERACT seminar
36
Timis County
Energy Agency
www.ame.ro Timis County Energy Agency assisted the drafting of the Energy
Master Plan for the Region, education, awareness raising and
examines the potential for geothermal energy in the area.
Warminsko- Ma-
zurskie Energy
Agency
www.wmae.pl The Agency has supported municipalities of the Region cov-
ered in energy planning,promoted the use of solar panels in
households,development of agricultural biogas and education
at schools.
West Portugal
Energy Agency
oestesustentavel@oestedigital.pt Assists primarily the 14 covered municipalities of the Associa-
tion with drafting of SEAPs and submitting,reduction of energy
use in buildings, public procurement and transport.
ACRONYM PROGRAMME WEBSITE BRIEF DESCRIPTION
KliKER - Klimakommunen in
der Euregio Rhein-Waal
Germany - Netherlands (DE-
NL)
Development of climate change action
plans.
SEACS - Sustainable Energy
Across The Common Space
France (Manche) - England
(FR-GB)
www.seacs.info Establishing a network of six energy
ambassadors that raise awareness,
advise and promote opportunities for
individual households, communities,
schools and partner authorities to
reduce their energy demand.
EnSURE - Energy Savings
in Urban Quarters through
Rehabilitation and New Ways
of Energy Supply
Central Europe Programme www.ensure-project.
eu;
Development of strategies for an
energetic rehabilitation of the building
stock and energy effciency in urban
development.
ENERMED - Mediterranean
Renewable Energies
Mediterranean www.enermedproject.
eu
Improving regional policies within the
Mediterranean region in support of the
integration of renewable energies.
ZECOS - Development and
Introduction of the Com-
munal Zero CO
2
Emission
Certifcation System as a Tool
for Sustainable Communities
and Regions
North West Europe Pro-
gramme
www.zecos.eu Developing a Zero CO
2
Emission
Awarding System acknowledging
communities which set themselves CO
2
emission reduction goals that are far
beyond the regular compliance.
EnergyCity Reducing
energy consumption and
CO2 emissions in cities across
Central Europe
Central Europe Programme www.energycity2013.
eu;
ENERGYCITY aims at contributing
to the implementation of renewable
energy sources and effciency practices
in cities in Central Europe through data
collection, the refnement of an online
Spatial Decision Support System and
implementation of concrete actions in
cities.
SEAP APLS - Sustainable
Energy Action Plans
Alpine Space Programme www.seap-alps.eu Promotion of sustainable energy plan-
ning at local level and sharing of a
common methodology through capac-
ity building.
Energy Cluster Baltic Sea Region Programme eu.baltic.net/Ener-
gy.21783.html
Cluster of sustainable energy projects
in the INTERREG Baltic Sea pro-
gramme.
ACE-NWE - Academy of
Champions for Energy
North West Europe Pro-
gramme
www.aceforenergy.eu Demonstrating and promoting the
increased use of renewable energy
among local authorities, businesses
and citizen to foster sustainable energy
communities.
Other participating ETC projects
Please visit our projects database for an overview and detailed information of IEE projects: http://eaci-projects.eu/iee